A Kiss from Days Past
by iuvui
Summary: Shinko and Kel are finally reuniting after four years. Will a never-before-mentioned kiss get between them? Modern one shot.


Shinko chewed her lip nervously as she waited in the baggage claim. She was coming to Tortall for school and couldn't wait for a new beginning, one where no one knew she was the sole heiress to one the Yamani Islands' largest corporations. Her family was involved in all sorts of business, from technology to food, so they "enjoyed" near celebrity status at home. Tortall had the absolute best business school in the Eastern Lands, so her family had been more than willing to let her come, but Shinko was a tad more excited about the freedom she was sure to get in a new country.

Checking her phone another time, she sighed as she looked around. Her high-school friend, Kel was supposed to come pick her up but was running a bit late. They were starting the same program the next month and Kel had happily volunteered to show her around and help her settle in. Kel's parents had been diplomats in the Yamani Islands for her high-school years and she and Shinko had become best friends over that time. They'd stayed in contact after that, but not as much as either would have liked. Truthfully, Shinko was worried about their friendship. See, right before Kel had left back to Tortall, in an airport similar to this one, the two said their goodbyes to each other. They hadn't expected to meet up again in the future, so Shinko had taken that opportunity to give Kel a quick kiss. She'd been harboring feelings for her friend for some time but hadn't said anything about to preserve their friendship. She'd left before being able to explain or see how Kel took it, and they'd never talked about it in the few messages they'd shared since. Now that they were meeting face-to-face again, Shinko was unsure on how things would be between them.

Her phone buzzed. Quickly unlocking her screen, she read the message. "Hey, I just reached," it read. "Just one more minute!"

Shinko smiled a bit as she typed, "I'm at the baggage claim. Take your time!" Sure things could be awkward, but it would be great to see her best friend again!

"Shinko!" She turned towards the voice. Standing up, she let her bag dropped as she hugged Kel with a grin.

"Keladry, you look great! You're so much taller!"

"You too Shinko! I'm so excited you're finally here," Kel said bending over to pick up Shinko's fallen bag. "Is this everything?"

Shinko nodded and gathered up her things. "So how are you?" she asked.

"Great! Looking forward to grad school. Here let me," Kel took one of Shinko's duffels in hand. "Wow Shinko, are you moving here or something?:

"I see you haven't lost your sense of humor," Shinko rolled her eyes. "How's your family? Any more nieces or nephews?" Kel came from a large family and they were continuously growing with marriages and births and adoptions… Shinko honestly didn't have any idea how many Mindelans there were anymore.

"They're good! Mum's actually planning a visit back the Islands in the spring. Anders had twins a few weeks ago and someone, I forget who, got a new puppy. Nothing else important, I guess." Kel led the way to the parking garage and they soon saw her practical silver car. "How about you? And how was the flight?" she asked, unlocking the trunk.

"Parents are still adjusting to the fact that I'm in a whole different country. They'll be fine though. "The flight was good, I started a new book I think you'd like."

"Oh nice," Kel said, heaving the bags into the car. With a bit of rearranging and sheer strength, they finally managed to fit everything in. Slamming the trunk shut, Kel grinned at Shinko. "Are you hungry?"

"Starving!"

"Well then, let's introduce you to the finest Tortallan cuisine: burgers!"

"This is fantastic," Shinko mumbled around a bite of her burger. Kel had opted for a salad to stick to her strict diet. Laughing, she stole a sip of Shinko's milkshake.

Shinko was relieved. Things seemed just like they'd been four years ago! Well, minus that niggling feeling she had at the back of her mind. Shinko knew it wouldn't ever go until she found out what Kel thought about that kiss… Maybe just mentioning it and moving on would be best.

"So, who's this Neal you keep mentioning?"

"Neal? He's just a friend. We met in college and I've been stuck with him since. He's coming to uni with us too, by the way. I think he'll be living in the same building. You'll meet him soon enough."

"Oh just a friend?" Shinko blushed. Maybe that was too outright.

Kel scoffed. "Definitely. Never anything more." She paused, a forkful of lettuce halfway to her mouth. Hesitating, she put it down and looked at Shinko.

"We never talked about it," she said, abruptly.

"No we didn't," Shinko replied, trying to seem nonchalant.

"Well…,"

Shinko couldn't take it anymore. Wouldn't it be better to make a little white lie than ruin a friendship? She blurted out "I didn't mean it," right when Kel finally said, "I've hoped you meant it."

They froze. Kel blushed as she stuffed the lettuce in her mouth. Chewing furiously she tried to change the subject. "Do you like your burger?"

Shinko shook her head. "Wait, you liked me?"

Kel blushed even further, "I didn't want to say anything. Anyways, it doesn't matter."

"I liked you," Shinko stated. Laughing at herself when Kel's face crumpled in confusion, she continued, "I just said it didn't matter because I thought you didn't care…"

Kel slowly nodded, her confused frown slowly melting into a shy smile. "So."

"So. Neal's definitely out of the picture?"

Kel snorted. "Definitely. Do you… have anyone?

"No. See, I've kind of being hooked on someone I used to know."

Kel wrinkled her nose and Shinko stuck her tongue out at her. Leaning forward, Kel stuck hers out in return and Shinko came even closer. Kel giggled and hesitantly closed the gap between. Things had definitely turned out different from expected!


End file.
